RSHM SOUNDINGS is a quarterly publication of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, Eastern and Western American and Northern European Provinces, and Zambezi Region. Waves sent out, reflected back, reveal an inner reality not al-ways evident on the surface. Thus SOUNDINGS probes RSHM life in expanding circles of ministry and community. You, our readers, are part of our life. We invite your com-ments and suggestions so that your thoughts may be reflected in these pages.

Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary English Speaking Provinces

Volume XXV, Number 4 Winter 2019

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TARRYTOWN, NY It has been a

little over a year since I moved into

Marymount Convent and what

stands out for me are the ways that

kindness is made visible in the ac-

tions of all the folks in the house. It

is a very big operation and has

many moving parts. We are blessed

with our Coordinator, Sr. Margaret

Hoyne; the nursing, kitchen, busi-

ness, housekeeping, and mainte-

nance staffs; the Life Enrichment

and Pastoral Care staffs, as well as

the receptionists who welcome the

countless friends and volunteers

who bring joy and service of every

kind to the house. We are all greatly

blessed!

One cannot help but notice the

kind interactions of all the people

and their love and concern for each

other in sometimes BIG but mostly

small ways. It is the magnificent,

radiant smile in return for a small but

necessary service. It is the offering

of time to be of assistance. It is the

gentle, quiet awareness of the

needs of others, the great hospitali-

ty, joy, laughter and deep concern

for all the “each others.”

We are blessed to celebrate the

Eucharist in our home each day and

it is this COMMUNION that exempli-

fies our lives lived in kindness, unity

and hospitality in communion with

GOD and with each other.♦

HOUSE OF KINDNESS

by Edith Hart, RSHM

GOING FORWARD FOR A BLESSING

by Martha Harkness

OSSINING, NY When I think of

acts of kindness, I think of the

warmth of the RSHM community

that I have had the pleasure of serv-

ing over the past 12 years. I am

grateful for the opportunity to wor-

ship with you. Perhaps you have

wondered why I go to Mass every

day. I go out of gratitude for the

mercy, welcome, and kindness of

God I receive there through the Lit-

urgy of the Word, through the gath-

ered community: the prayers, read-

ings of Scriptures, and the homily.

Yet the kindness does not stop

there. While I cannot fully participate

in the Liturgy of the Eucharist, I can

participate by going forward and

receiving a blessing. What joy! That

simple act of kindness touches me

deeply. The same hands that held

the blessed sacrament offer me a

blessing from our kind God. That

same kind God calls me to kindness

toward all living-kind. I put it another

way in this poem:

Going forward day by day,

I do not know the words to say, or

The Eucharistic Prayers to pray.

But I know kindness in each face…

I count my blessings, there I trace

The patterns of God’s wondrous

grace.

And the blessing the priest gives— Eucharist becomes the way we live,

Seeing from Christ’s perspective.

As the Spirit conceives,

as in God’s Son we believe,

God’s love, we all receive— We go out to live.♦

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Office of the President October 23, 2018 Brigid Driscoll ’54, RSHM, Ph.D. Marymount Convent Dear Sister Brigid, I want to let you know how much you mean to me and how much I love you. Since the first moment I met you, I knew you would be an influential person in my life—and I was right! I have felt a kinship with you not only because you are one of Marymount Manhattan’s most distinguished alumna—and I say that knowing you will balk at the word “distinguished,” even though it’s true. Our true kinship is in our having both been Marymount presidents. You have understood from the beginning of my presidency exactly what it feels like to lead an insti-tution of such import—an institution whose mission is to transform young lives. I have felt as if I am one of your successors, carrying on the work that you did so skillfully for two decades. For these reasons, I was so grateful when you agreed to participate in my inauguration ceremony three years ago in your “bumble bee” aca-demic regalia. I cherish my memories of this milestone event. That was a public display of our connection—of the passing of the torch. Our private connection has been more important and meaningful to me. You have generously picked up the phone to give me a confidential heads-up about situations that, as Marymount Manhattan’s President, I needed to know about. Your advice on these occa-sions was always wise—and gently, delicately given. As a role model, you have shown me that leadership is as much about working behind the scenes in a careful and caring way as it is about standing up in front of a crowd. You have inspired me by your example. Given your dedication to Bedford Hills* and the education of our students there, it was no surprise to me when you were intent upon returning as a Math tutor. I know from speaking with the Bedford Hills women that you made Math, well, not fun, exactly, but let’s say approachable. You were able to help your students overcome their fears and help them see that they could do the impossible. What a gift! What blessings you have bestowed on all of the students you have taught! I count myself among this fortunate group. You have given each one of us whose lives you have touched the gift of your experience, your wisdom, your gentleness, and your faith. Please know that I am holding you, and will always hold you, in my heart. With love and affection,

Kerry

Kerry Walk, Ph.D. President *Marymount Manhattan College sponsors a degree-granting Program at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women.

This letter was sent to Sr. Brigid Driscoll when she was in hospice care at Marymount Convent, Tarrytown. We include it as an inspiring example of a legacy of kindness linking past and present leaders of RSHM foundations.

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LOS ANGELES, CA Those who

know me, know that the parish

where I worship, Santa Teresita

Church, is a place where my faith is

nourished on a weekly basis. Santa

Teresita is one of the poorest parish-

es in Los Angeles, located near the

Ramona Gardens Projects, subsi-

dized housing for low-income fami-

lies, and plagued by gang violence

and drug abuse.

Following the Spanish morning

Eucharist, our little choir has coffee

in the rectory, during which we brief-

ly reflect on the next Sunday’s read-

ings, and discuss music that would

enhance the liturgy. It was on such a

Sunday that I experienced an act of

kindness. I walked into the rectory’s

small dining room to see a room

NEW YORK, NY It is easy to lose

sight of kindness when there is so

much unrest, cynicism, and harsh

rhetoric in the news and on social

media. As a Nursery through Class

II Religion Teacher, I am always

mindful of sharing Jesus’ message

of caring for others through words

and actions. This year, our school is

focusing on fulfilling Goal #6 of the

RSHM Mission, “That all may have

life and have it to the full.” Being a

kind human being is essential to

living this goal daily.

Each grade has been focusing

on lessons about how to incorporate

Goal #6 into their daily lives. Nurse-

ry, PreK and Kindergarten are con-

centrating on sharing, Class I is

learning about “The Golden Rule”,

and Class II is studying the lives of

saints. This led me to thinking about

St. Thérèse of Lisieux and her mes-

sage on the importance of small acts

of kindness. The more we spoke

about the goal, the more I realized

that I was witness to, and the recipi-

ent of, my students’ small acts of

kindness.

In Nursery, I was touched by

the student who shared her special

toy with another student. I am tick-

led each time a PK student says, “I

adore you!” During a recent Shelter

in Place Drill, I was moved when a

Kindergarten student consoled an-

other student who was frightened. I

was in awe when twin sisters in

Class I, and their brother from

Nursery, ran a bake sale outside

their building to collect money for

LESSONS FROM MY STUDENTS

by Fran McGoldrick

THE WIDOW’S MITE

by Catherine Minhoto, RSHM

Pictured from left: Sr. Regina Penin SAG, Alfredo Matamoros, Claudia Flores, Sr. Cathy Minhoto RSHM, Joaquin Lopez, Magdalena Barber.

filled with decorated cardboard bas-

kets packed with canned food,

beans, rice, and pasta for the needy

of our community. I was so moved

to see the incredible generosity of

people who have so little, and I was

reminded of the previous week’s

gospel of the widow who gave her

“mite.” Like the widow, these are

people who give out of their sub-

stance. This was a challenge for

me—knowing that my giving has

more to do with my abundance than

my substance. The gospel is pro-

claimed to me by these wonderful,

faith-filled people—poor and hungry

people whom God has exalted and

in whom God delights.♦

Hurricane Michael victims. Each

morning, a Class II student stops by

our faculty office to share a hug with

everyone in the office. If any teach-

ers are missing, she asks another

teacher to share her hug and “Have

a nice day!” message with them

when they return.

I have an Instagram friend

group, and we all work in a school.

We close our threads with the

hashtag, “Blessed.” Being the recipi-

ent of, and witness to, my students’

small acts of kindness affirms that I

am truly #Blessed.♦

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People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may ac-cuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.

On Sunday, December 2, 2018 when alumnae gathered in Butler Commons at Fordham University for Founder’s Day, Maureen Kelleher RSHM received the Mother Butler Leadership Award for her years of dedicated work with immigrants in Immokalee, Florida. The following accounts were at the heart of her address. Jocelyn a 21 year old mother from EL Salvador entered the US with her 2 yr old daughter Juana. They passed the credible fear inter-view at the border and were allowed to stay in the US and report monthly to ICE while preparing her political asylum defense for the immigration court. She came to Legal Aid of Col-lier County for help. She explained she had fled El Salvador after she and her younger sister were at-tacked and almost raped by 3 gang members but neighbors came to their defense. She was marked for punishment by the drug gang. While she had been paying them the ex-tortion fees weekly from her little business she had refused their offer to pay a reduced monthly fee if she would make her younger brother join the gang. When she and he continued to refuse, they beat him severely and broke his arm in July. So in August after she survived the attempted rape she and her brother, with little Juana, fled El Salvador to come to the US. We will represent Jocelyn and many other women with similar sto-ries but we know they will eventually

WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?

by Maureen Kelleher, RSHM

this case later in 2018 since Attorney General Sessions issued his deci-sion that such victims of domestic violence were not what he deter-mined to qualify as members of a particular social group. The solution for these, and so many others, lies in nations with the capacity like Canada, the US and Mexico to collaborate with honest stake holders in Honduras Guatema-la and El Salvador to invest so as to make change in these countries. Some would argue since we con-sume some of these drugs and have interfered with their government over the years we face some responsibil-ity. I only say that when my neigh-bor’s house in on fire I can hardly say it is no concern of mine. The amount of violence and murder in these countries makes me see them as on fire.♦

Alumnae of Mother Butler Memorial High School, Bronx, NY came to the Founder’s Day gather-ing to hear their former English teacher, Sr. Maureen Kelleher (center).

be deported since under the law, they will be judged as victims of common law crime. They will not qualify as fitting into a protected cat-egory as fearing persecution on ac-count of their religion, race, nationali-ty, political opinion, or as members of a particular social group. Not all of my cases will end in deportation. One victory early this year was for a woman who suffered long months of beatings from her partner a gang member. She left him in Honduras and returned to El Sal-vador to her family but he followed her there where he continued to threaten and abuse her. The immi-gration court found she had suffered persecution as a member of a partic-ular social group. I defined her as a member of “El Salvadoran women unable to leave a domestic relation-ship with Maras 18 gang members.” However, I could not have won

If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.

THE ANYWAY OF MOTHER TERESA

(Submitted by Sr. Ellen Marie Keane at the last Soundings meeting she attended)

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

NEXT ISSUE:

AHA! MOMENTS

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TARRYTOWN, NY There have

been so many examples of kindness

in the RSHM congregation since its

founding in 1849. One of my favorite

religious who modeled this kindness

was Mother St. Liguori MacMullen.

She had a long and holy life (1853-

1940) and passed on her kindness

from generation to generation, serv-

ing as superior in Portugal and

France for 63 years.

Appointed superior of the Braga

community when only 24 years of

age, M. St. Liguori was often found

in the kitchen, helping the sisters

prepare a meal, or teaching the

classes of a sister who was ill. Espe-

cially if the young sisters went to

Beziers to prepare for their final

vows or if a postulant went to begin

her novitiate, there was always work

to be covered. With M. St. Liguori,

however, one senses that she was

not so concerned with the reputation

of the school, as with the welfare of

the students and the members of

the community devoted to them.

Gailhac wrote to M. St. Liguori

unambiguously and without fear that

his words could be received as flat-

tery:

You are, you, like a reservoir of

the graces of God. It is into your

soul that God is pleased to pour

these graces and it is up to you to

communicate them to your

daughters by your prayers, your

example and your counsel.

(9/16/1884)

Mother Joseph Butler was fortu-

nate to be sent to Braga the year

after her first profession in 1880,

and to be formed as a religious by

this kind superior, in this graced

community, for over twenty years.

When Mother Butler asked if the

RSHM in Braga could begin to offer

preached retreats, not just to alum-

nae or to the students’ mothers, but

to lay women of all classes of socie-

ty, only one member of the commu-

nity supported Mother Butler’s

“radical idea” -- Mother St. Liguori.

The first preached retreat for lay

women of all classes was so suc-

cessful that the whole Braga com-

munity supported continuing the

retreats for them during the summer

when the students were on vaca-

tion.

M. de l’Eucharistie had been a

young Portuguese sister in the Bra-

ga community with M. St. Liguori as

superior and M. Joseph Butler. Lat-

er, when the Revolution of 1911

exiled all religious congregations

from Portugal, M. de l’Eucharistie,

then Representative of the General

Superior in Portugal, Brazil and

Spain, led many of the exiled RSHM

across the border to Tuy, Spain. As

time went on, she opened a school

to accommodate their former stu-

dents who wished to cross into

Spain to continue their classes with

the RSHM. M. de l’Eucharistie did

not forget the needs of the lay wom-

en still in Portugal but deprived of

spiritual help. When the students

returned to Portugal to take their

examinations, the Portuguese lay

women were welcomed to Tuy for

preached retreats and spiritual re-

newal.

When M. Joseph Butler was

missioned to Tarrytown (1907),

Marymount School opened with just

six students. Trusting in providence,

INHERITING KINDNESS FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION

by Kathleen Connell, RSHM

Mother Joseph Butler asked for a

four storied South Wing to be built to

provide a chapel and a dining room,

classrooms, a large lounge and bed-

rooms for the boarders on the two

floors above. Already, Mother Butler

was planning retreats for lay women

of all classes who could come to the

South Wing when the students re-

turned home for the summer.

Retreats for lay women re-

mained a high priority for Mother

Butler until she died. She had been

ahead of her time. She had been

encouraged by M. St. Liguori and

imitated by M. de l’Eucharistie in

very difficult times. In 1898, the Car-

dinal Vannutelli congratulated Moth-

er Joseph Butler for the retreat

movement when he visited the com-

munity in Braga, and at the Chapter

of 1919, Cardinal de Cabrieres

praised, in particular, the work of

retreats given at Marymount and in

Tuy, and expressed his desire to

know more about the method used

in these retreats.

It was a small kindness, nurtured

in “the reservoir of graces,” inherited

by Mother Joseph Butler and passed

on to others in Tuy and Tarrytown.

May the RSHM continue to fan into

flame this spiritual kindness for all

yearning to know and love God.♦

M. St. Ligouri with poor children in Braga, Portugal

Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage

PAID White Plains, NY Permit No. 5432

Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary 50 Wilson Park Drive Tarrytown, New York 10591 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

6

EDITORS: Cecilia Brizuela Irene Cody, RSHM Bea McMahon, RSHM Pierre Dullaghan, RSHM

Margaret Treacy, RSHM Monica Walsh, RSHM

Mary Alice Young, RSHM Clevie Youngblood, RSHM

ART EDITOR: Edith Hart, RSHM LAYOUT: Bianca Haglich, RSHM www.rshm.org; www.rshm-nep.org; province@rshmeap.org Printed by JAM Press, Hawthorne, NY

CONTRIBUTORS

Kathleen Connell, RSHM, researcher and writer on RSHM history,

Tarrytown NY

Martha Harkness, Pastoral Care Coordinator, Marymount Convent,

Tarrytown, NY

Edith Hart, RSHM, conservator of works of art on paper, Tarrytown, NY

Deborah Jamali, RSHM, business office worker at the Chinhoyi Pastoral

Centre in Zimbabwe

Maureen Kelleher, RSHM, Managing Attorney for Legal Aid Services, Collier

County, FL.

Fran McGoldrick, Religious Studies teacher, Marymount School of New York

Catherine Minhoto, RSHM, Western American Provincial Councillor and

music minister at Santa Teresita Church in Los Angeles, CA.

Kerry Walk, President of Marymount Manhattan College, NYC

CHINHOYI, ZIMBABWE

“KINDNESS” comes across to

me in the same way as the word

“good.” God is good and kind and

Jesus came to show us what God is

like. So Jesus is our great example

of kindness. Maybe the word

“kindness” is another name we can

give Jesus because of his promotion

of kindness towards all. “I have

come that you may have life and

have it to the full.” In other texts Je-

sus says, he came for sinners, not

for the righteous.

The teachings of Jesus have made me reflect on the way I give and receive kindness. I find this es-pecially operative in community life. Our people cherish and admire the community where kindness and goodness are evident. I appreciate this kindness in my RSHM Commu-

nity in Chinhoyi where we share time

and space in accommodating and

listening to each other. Sharing our

talents, enjoying the food we prepare

for each other and the giving and

receiving of forgiveness, are all ex-

pressions of the goodness and kind-

ness of our God.

Paul talks about kindness in Ga-

latians Chapter 5. The kind heart

accommodates all people, regard-

less of culture, black or white, finally

professed or junior sisters. Kindness

does not distinguish but builds to-

gether a fabric of love and peace

where all feel they belong. This is

the kindness which heals and frees

us and which brings us closer to

God and to each other.♦

THE KIND HEART IS OPEN TO ALL

by Deborah Jamali RSHM